Race drivers always get the attention from the ladies. Christian Carrozzo’s Ferrari 340MM enters the assembly area prior to the Lavant cup.
Story and Photos by Jonathan Sharp
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Goodwood sights and sounds
Race meeting programs normally have a picture of a racing car on the front cover. No racing cars on the cover for this year’s Goodwood Revival Meeting program. This year’s cover? Frozen Fish Fingers. Frozen Fish Fingers! Why? I will explain in a sentence or two.
The organizers make a big play each year in celebrating milestone anniversaries, this year choosing to celebrate amongst others the 50th anniversary of the Shelby Daytona Cobra Coupe’s winning the 1965 FIA World Sports car title and also rather appropriately for an ex RAF Fighter station the 75th anniversary of the Battle of Britain. Oh, and the 50th anniversary of the introduction of the frozen fish finger by Clarence Birds eye hence the front cover of the program and also the sight of a fishing boat washed up on a bed of shingle in front of the main entrance to the circuit. The fishing boat was named the Birds Eye and bedecked in various sizes of fish fingers which I did not understand until I received the program.
The Fordwater Trophy this held was run for production and GT cars of a type which raced between 1948 and 1954. The entry list included a couple of Lancia B20s,an Alfa Romeo 1900CSS and two Fiat Otto Vu’s. This is Graham Burrow’s 1954 8V which was driven by Ian Nuthall.
…and this Zagato bodied example is from 1953 an is being driven by its owner Christian Traber.
As previously mentioned the Lavant Cup race was for drum braked Ferraris. Emanuele Pirro blasts past the pit complex in Ernst Schuster’s 1957 5ooTRC.
The Brooklands trophy for sports cars in the spirit of the great Brooklands endurance races prior to 1939 was also blessed with a varied and impressive entry list which among others included Bentleys, Bugattis, Maserati’s, Fraser Nash’s a supercharged Mercedes-Benz 710SSK and 4 Alfa Romeos. Here we see Alain de Cadenet in his 1931 8C 2300MM .
The RAC TT celebration is a race full of star cars and drivers, one of which has to be Martin Hulusa’s 1961 ex Count Volpi Ferrari 250GT Breadvan.
The entry for this years Goodwood trophy for Grand Prix and Voiturette cars included 10 ERAs, Three Alfa P3s and an Alfa 308C, 8 Maseratis and this 1948 Talbot Lago T26C entered and raced by Klaus Lehr.
Another star car and driver combination in the TT race was Derek Bell and Emanuele Pirro in Clive Joy’s 1964 Ferrari 250LM. Here we still Derek Bell putting the power down after exiting the chicane.
Friday morning dawned bright and sunny. The light was lovely as you can see in this shot of Urs Muller’s 1938 Maserati 6CM. An entrant in the Goodwood Trophy.
The six Cobra coupes lined up on Friday.
Hey little Cobra
Anyway going back to the more important anniversaries. To celebrate the Daytona Cobra Coupe Lord March’s team had managed to gather all 6 of the Coupe’s built including the car that Craig Breedlove drove to various world records on the Bonneville Salt Flats and that was later driven on the streets of Los Angeles by Phil Spector. On each of the three days of the event the 6 Coupes where demonstrated at high speed around the circuit. On Sunday saw the arrival of a very youthful looking Peter Brock who enjoyed his time on the grid surrounded by his creations. To house the Coupe’s when not on the track, the Revival team had constructed a replica of the Sebring pit complex ala 1965.
Michael Gan’s Maserati V8RI awaits the arrival of the rest of the competitors for the Goodwood Trophy.
Tony Wood’s 1959 Tec Mec Maserati does not really need polishing to make it go fast but an Italian beauty must look her best on the grid.
And the aeroplanes…
To commemorate the 75th anniversary of the Battle of Britain, the team assembled an amazing line up of Spitfires, Hurricanes and the world’s only flying Bristol Blenheim. I think I counted well over 20 aircraft on display. Each aircraft was entered into the Freddie March Spirit of Aviation award with the recently restored MK1 Spitfire N3200 from John Romain’s Historic Flying Ltd taking a fine third place. A special commemoration of the Battle of Britain was held on Sunday on the start line. Following a speech in tribute by Lord March the names of the 57 pilots from the Tangmere section which included RAF Westhampnet who had died during the battle were read out. As each name was read out an air cadet would lower the RAF Standard that he/she was holding in tribute. Following this a group of B of B veterans where driven around the circuit in war time Jeeps to be greeted by clapping and cheering by the immense crowd. Whilst this went on the Spitfires and Hurricanes of the Battle of Britain Memorial flight flew formation circuits above the circuit.
Superb cars as far as the eye can see. Tony Smith’s 1934 ex-Guy Moll/Richard Shuttleworth P3 heads the line up.
It is always a good idea to make your way to the paddock area first thing on the Saturday morning. This allows you to see the entrants for the Goodwood Trophy. Here we see the mechanics warming the transmission of the ex Birra Maserati 8CM of Christopher Jaques.
Tom Shaughnessy’s lovely 1954 375MM Spyder which was driven in the race by Mark Donaldson.
Jason Kennedy’s Lancia B20GT, driven by Louise Kennedy leads the entrants of the Fordwater Trophy onto the track.
Sean Danaher’s Maserati 8CM from 1934 heads a lineup of Goodwood Trophy cars. Sean’s other Maserati, a 6CM stands behind the 8CM. Sean drove the 8CM, Calum Lockie drove the 6cm.
Back in the day with few wind tunnels, no computer fluid dynamics, just a Mini van with a cut down helicopter blade as an aerofoil. This is how Bruce McLaren tested the idea of wings. Attached a set of bathroom scales to each strut inside the van to measure down force and a fishing weight to the aerofoil, then blast up and down the local bypass. Brilliant.
Remembering Bruce
Whilst it was not a special anniversary year the event also celebrated the life of Bruce McLaren. A grid of about 28 cars connected with the life of Bruce were assembled and paraded around the track each day. The parade was preceded by Lord March reading a eulogy to Bruce, and a film tribute being shown around the circuit on the big TV screens. In addition to the cars that gathered various guests connected with Bruce McLaren racing where drawn together in celebration.
Broken Silence
I also try each year to attend the Holy Communion service held on the Sunday morning in front of the Bruce McLaren memorial Garden. This is usually a time of engine silence but this year whilst we sang I vow to the my country the silence was broken by the spine tingling sound of a Rolls Royce Merlin powered fighter plane taking off for the daily dawn patrol air display. The sound of our hard won freedom and I do not mind admitting that I had a lump in by throat.
As to the racing? Simply fabulous.
Forming part of the daily track tribute to Bruce McLaren was this M1B. I may be wrong but I think the gentleman in a cap standing by the rear aerofoil is Gordon Coppick, the co-designer of the car.
As entered in the Fordwater cup, Marco Cajani’s 1954 Alfa Romeo 1900CSS Zagato.
Bruce McLaren died whilst testing an M8D at the Goodwood circuit in June 1970 so it was rather fitting that a track tribute to Bruce was held on each day of the Revival meeting. Here is a general view of the cars connected to him waiting to start their parade laps.
Jackie Stewart drove the one off McLaren BRM M5A during Saturdays tribute. Here he watches the film tribute to Bruce before commencing his demonstration laps
Many people believe Gordon Murray’s McLaren F1 was their first road car. Afraid not. Bruce was developing a road car at the time of his death, the M6GT. Shown here in the assembly area with Bruce’s sister at the wheel.
Why is it that the cars starts first time in the paddock, idles beautifully when driving to the assembly arear and then refuses to start just as the cars depart for the start of the race? Rainer Ott’s 1948 Maserati 4CLT.
A recent innovation at the Revival has been the Earls Court display. The Earls Court exhibition Centre is located in London and was once home to the London Motor Show. That area of London was in fact once owned by Lord March’s descendants. The idea behind the display is to have a 1966 London Motor show and the manufactures are displaying their idea as to what the cars of the future, namely 2015 will look like. This allows Maserati, Jaguar, Aston to show their latest products. This year the central display area was dedicated to Ferrari under the title of Seeing Red. This Fantuzzi-bodied 1963 250 Lusso now owned by Michael Dee was originally ordered by the brother of the owner of the Tecno racing. Sometime later he had Fantuzzi rebody it to incorporate elements of the GTO, mainly around the nose area
Visitors to the exhibit were encouraged to vote for the favorite. Their winner, Paul Vesty’s GTO. Mine? Probably the Fantuzzi but I could have been swayed by the 212 Vignale which I had previously photographed at Holyrood.
Is there really only six Daytona Cobras? At the Lime Rock Historic races the weekend previous there was one on display wearing #14. It was publicized as the first Daytona built. Your photo above does not have any Daytona wearing #14.
just for the record … Marco Cajani’s 1900CSS is bedied by Touring not Zagato.